" ... Now I give you something that few think about: What do you think the Internet is all about, historically? Citizens of all the countries on Earth can talk to one another without electronic borders. The young people of those nations can all see each other, talk to each other, and express opinions. No matter what the country does to suppress it, they're doing it anyway. They are putting together a network of consciousness, of oneness, a multicultural consciousness. It's here to stay. It's part of the new energy. The young people know it and are leading the way.... "

" ... I gave you a prophecy more than 10 years ago. I told you there would come a day when everyone could talk to everyone and, therefore, there could be no conspiracy. For conspiracy depends on separation and secrecy - something hiding in the dark that only a few know about. Seen the news lately? What is happening? Could it be that there is a new paradigm happening that seems to go against history?... "Read More …. "The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll)

Have you seen innovation and invention in the past decade that required thinking out of the box of an old reality? Indeed, you have. I can't tell you what's coming, because you haven't thought of it yet! But the potentials of it are looming large. Let me give you an example, Let us say that 20 years ago, you predicted that there would be something called the Internet on a device you don't really have yet using technology that you can't imagine. You will have full libraries, buildings filled with books, in your hand - a worldwide encyclopedia of everything knowable, with the ability to look it up instantly! Not only that, but that look-up service isn't going to cost a penny! You can call friends and see them on a video screen, and it won't cost a penny! No matter how long you use this service and to what depth you use it, the service itself will be free.

Now, anyone listening to you back then would perhaps have said, "Even if we can believe the technological part, which we think is impossible, everything costs something. There has to be a charge for it! Otherwise, how would they stay in business?" The answer is this: With new invention comes new paradigms of business. You don't know what you don't know, so don't decide in advance what you think is coming based on an old energy world. ..."

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Indonesian Muslims Surf Internet for a Sacrifice

Muslims commemorate the Idul Adha holiday by sacrificing goats and sharing the meat to feed the needy. (JG Photo)

Muslims no longer have to purchase sacrificial goats and cattle for Idul Adha in person, but can arrange for them to be delivered to their home or slaughtered in their name via the Internet.

In the days prior to Idul Adha, most Muslim families of sufficient means purchase livestock at their neighborhood mosque or at tethering stalls on the side of the road.

On the holiday itself, the majority of them bring the animals to halal slaughterhouses for butchers to sacrifice, but some others, who know how to kill animals humanely following the Koran’s edicts, take matters into their own hands.

The main purpose of the slaughter is to feed the needy, who receive portions of meat. However, it is not always easy to find a healthy animal, a halal butcher and bona fide poor people.

Aiming to simplify the process, a number of Indonesian-based halal livestock sellers have begun operating online.

Risdiyanto, 32, a physics teacher living in Central Java, established www.sapiqu.com about six weeks ago, just in time for Idul Adha.

He said his family had always been in the halal cattle industry, but he worked as a teacher and simply didn’t have time to run a cattle market.

“With Internet technology you don’t have to spend a lot of money building an office or store,” Risdiyanto said.

He posts pictures of his cows on his Web site’s gallery. Prices range from Rp 7.7 million to Rp 18.3 million ($815 to $1,940). Orders are made over the phone and the transaction can be completed either by cash or bank transfer.

Risdiyanto requires a down payment of Rp 2 million and says he can deliver to any address in Bandung or Jakarta. After the initial payment has been made, the cow is transported from the family’s stockyard in Purbalingga, Central Java, to the delivery address.

Risdiyanto said it hadn’t been easy building trust among customers, most of whom had so far been friends or friends of friends. First, it’s not easy to convince people to transfer their money to someone they don’t know, he said. Second, most people prefer to see the cows in the flesh, and are generally fussy.

“For Idul Adha, most people are concerned about the appearance of the cows,” Risdiyanto said.

He said people also liked to show their animals off around their neighborhoods, signifying the extent of their charity.

Mulyadi Ilham, a customer of sapiqu.com, said he learned of the service from a friend. “I just wanted to try. It’s a very easy method of buying a cow for Idul Adha,” Mulyadi said.

Rumah Zakat Indonesia (The Indonesia House of Alms) also offers Idul Adha services at rumahzakat.org.

Founded by Abu Syauqi, a cleric living in Bandung, in 1998, Rumah Zakat cans beef and goat and sells it online with the aim of distributing the meat to those in need in the poorer parts of Indonesia, such as in Sabang and Papua.

Before the sacrifice, the butcher will say a prayer and also mention the buyer’s name.

Purchasers, however, don’t get to pick animals out, and are not presented with proof of their sacrifice other than an e-mail confirmation.

A goat, priced at Rp 1 million, yields about 40 200-gram cans of meat. Cows sell for Rp 10 million and provide about 400 cans of meat for the poor.

Another option is for buyers the share the costs of a cow with seven others.

Rumah Zakat also has consultants available to talk buyers through the process via Internet messenger service.

Three sociologists from the University of Indonesia declined to comment about the practice of arranging sacrifices online, because it is considered a sensitive issue. However, Masdar F Mas’udi, the deputy chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama, said buying sacrificial livestock on the Internet should not be controversial.

“Life is changing. If it is possible to buy sacrifices indirectly with credible information, it is not a problem,” he said.

Masdar said the most important concern was whether buyers were being scammed.

INTERNET / CYBERSPACE

"... Now I give you something that few think about: What do you think the Internet is all about, historically? Citizens of all the countries on Earth can talk to one another without electronic borders. The young people of those nations can all see each other, talk to each other, and express opinions. No matter what the country does to suppress it, they're doing it anyway. They are putting together a network of consciousness, of oneness, a multicultural consciousness. It's here to stay. It's part of the new energy. The young people know it and are leading the way.... "

"... I gave you a prophecy more than 10 years ago. I told you there would come a day when "everyone could talk to everyone and, therefore, there could be no conspiracy." For conspiracy depends on separation and secrecy - something hiding in the dark that only a few know about. Seen the news lately? What is happening? Could it be that there is a new paradigm happening that seems to go against history? ..."Read More …. "The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll)